docs: def _getVals(self, prefix = ""):
          """
          return the values in the vals dict
          in case prefix is "", change the first letter of the name to lowercase, otherwise use prefix+name as the new name
          """
          if not hasattr(self, "vals"):
              self.vals = {}
          dict = {}
          for key in list(self.vals.keys()):
              # if no prefix then lower the first letter
              if prefix == "":
                  newkey = key[:1].lower() + key[1:] if key else ""
                  dict[newkey] = self.vals[key]
              else:
                  newkey = key[:1].upper() + key[1:] if key else ""
                  dict[prefix + newkey] = self.vals[key]
          return dict